Search for magnetism in hcp ε-Fe

We report the results of our recent experimental investigation which extends the search for magnetic ordering in the high-pressure, hcp phase of iron (ε-phase) to a temperature of 0.030 K. Mössbauer effect measurements were performed in the pressure range from atmospheric pressure to 21.5 GPa on a foil of natural iron (doped with 57Co). Measurements were made of the properties of both the α- and ε-phase constituents of the sample. No measurable magnetic hyperfine field was observed in the ε-phase from any of the spectra at pressures as high as 21.5 GPa and temperatures as low as 0.030 K.